Application process

Application deadline

Type of applicant

* If you are an applicant with an EU/EEA nationality and wish to apply for housing, you must submit your application by 1 March.

Applying for a scholarship?

If you are interested in a scholarship, you need to apply for both the Master's programme and the scholarship before 15 January. Learn more about scholarships in the Humanities on the website of the Graduate School of Humanities.

The Master's programme in Music Studies is open for application to all students with:

A university Bachelor's degree

The Master’s in Music Studies is open for application to students with a Bachelor’s degree from the UvA or from another accredited university in:

Musicology

The level of the Bachelor's degree from a foreign higher education institution must be equal to three years of Dutch university education (to be judged by the Examinations Board).

Pre-Master's programme

If you do not meet the entry requirements above, because, for example, you have a degree from a Dutch University of Applied Sciences (HBO), such as a conservatorium, or an equivalent thereof, you may be eligible for admission after completing the pre-Master's programme Music Studies.

If you are unsure whether you meet the entry requirements, you are advised to get in touch with the programme coordinator before applying.

English language requirements

New Master's students should be able to speak, read, write and understand English at an advanced academic level. Please check carefully whether you already meet the English language requirements or whether you need to arrange to take an official English language test. See the English language requirements on the Graduate School of Humanities website.

All students applying for a Master’s programme at the University of Amsterdam will need to start their application by submitting an enrolment application in Studielink. Studielink is the national online system for students who would like to pursue a degree programme at a Dutch university.

Applicants for Music Studies need to register in Studielink for Kunst- & cultuurwetenschappen 60 EC or Arts and Culture 60 EC at least 48 hours before the application deadline (see step 1). This is to ensure that you receive your login information (UvAnetID) in time to complete your UvA application in MyInfo (see step 5).

After submitting your enrolment application in Studielink, you will receive an email with your UvAnetID by email within 48 hours. Follow the instructions in the email to activate your ID as you will need it to complete your UvA application in MyInfo (see next step). If you already have a UvAnetID, you can skip this step.

After enrolling in Studielink, you will automatically receive an email with a link to your MyInfo UvA application form. To log in to MyInfo you need your UvAnetID. Please fill out the application form, upload the required documents and submit your MyInfo application form before the application deadline. For detailed information, please follow the link to further information on applying in MyInfo below.

Before starting your application, please take the following into account:

Deadline

You need to submit your application before the application deadline applicable to you (please see step 1). Late applications will not be considered.

English language requirements

In your MyInfo application you will need to upload an English language test score report that meets the English language requirements of the Graduate School Humanities.

Application fee

All applicants holding a nationality outside the EU/EEA are required to pay an application fee of €100 per Studielink enrolment before submitting your MyInfo application form. You will find payment instructions on your application form.

Application documents

As part of your application in MyInfo, you are required to upload transcripts, diplomas, a motivation letter, a CV/resume, and an English language test report (unless you are exempt). Please find detailed information and guidelines on the application documents you need to upload in MyInfo on the Graduate School of Humanities website.

Once we receive your complete application, it will be evaluated by our admissions committee. Late applications will not be considered. You will be notified about the admission decision by email. We aim to inform you within 8 weeks of the application deadline.

After (conditional) admission

After you have been conditionally accepted to the Master’s programme, you will receive a separate email with a link where you can accept, defer or decline your offer. Please make sure you respond within 2 weeks. We will only continue to further process your application, including your housing and visa application (if applicable), after you have confirmed our Accept Offer.

Accept
You will receive more instructions on how to complete your enrolment in due time. For now, please read the steps below.

Decline
If you decide to decline our programme offer, make sure you also withdraw your enrolment application in Studielink to avoid receiving emails about completing your enrolment.

If you have been (conditionally) admitted to our Master's programme, you can only start the programme in September if you have graduated from your Bachelor's before 1 September 2020*. In order for us to verify this, you are required to send us certified copies of your transcripts and degree certificates (we strongly advise against sending us original diplomas and transcripts). Note that you need to send us these documents by post. Plain copies or digital scans of the original certified documents are not accepted.

Please note that if the original language of your documents is in another language than English, Dutch, German or French, these documents must be translated into English by a sworn translator for application to the Graduate School of Humanities.

* If you have completed your studies, but the diploma itself will not be issued until after 31 August, please provide the Admissions Office with an official statement of graduation, signed and stamped by your university. In this graduation statement your university needs to declare that you have fulfilled all graduation requirements and have graduated from the Bachelor's programme, stating your exact graduation date. This graduation date must be a date before 1 September 2020.

In order to study in the Netherlands, you may need to apply for a residence permit and/or an entry visa. This depends on your nationality. You will receive an email from the immigration department with a link to an online application form after you have accepted our offer. More information on how to apply for UvA housing and on the UvA start appointment will become available in May.

Please keep in mind that the housing market in Amsterdam is very competitive and that applying for student housing through the UvA does not guarantee placement. For this reason, we advise you to start your orientation for housing options early and to always explore the private housing market as well. The UvA housing service is always offered for a fixed period of one year (two semesters) to new incoming international students.

Online course registration for the first semester takes place in June. All information about course registration can be found via the link below.

In the Course Catalogue, you can find the courses you will need to take each semester. The course catalogue for programmes starting in September is released in May. On www.rooster.uva.nl, you can enter your courses and see your own (weekly) timetable.

To help you get started in Amsterdam, the UvA and the Faculty of Humanities organise several mandatory and optional introduction sessions before the start of the semester.

START appointment
During the individual Start appointment, you will be able to collect your student ID card and check the status of your enrolment. More information about the START appointment.

Faculty introduction meeting
At the Faculty introduction meeting, which will take place in the week before the start of the semester, you will receive practical information about studying at the Faculty of Humanities and in Amsterdam. Moreover, it is a great way to meet other new students at the Faculty of Humanities.

Intreeweek
The Intreeweek is a great way to get to know Amsterdam, the UvA and your fellow UvA students. The Intreeweek is open to international and Dutch students for a small fee. Each year, a team of dedicated students organise this major event to kick-off the new year. You can find details on the Intreeweek website.

Programme-specific introduction
Most Master's programmes organise a programme-specific introduction during the Intreeweek. If applicable to your programme, you will receive an invitation from your Programme Coordinator separately.

Cookie Consent

The UvA website uses cookies and similar technologies to ensure the basic functionality of the site and for statistical and optimisation purposes. It also uses cookies to display content such as YouTube videos and for marketing purposes. This last category consists of tracking cookies: these make it possible for your online behaviour to be tracked. You consent to this by clicking on Accept. Also read our Privacy statement

Necessary

???cookiebar.consent-level.1.text.accessibility???

Cookies that are essential for the basic functioning of the website. These cookies are used to enable students and staff to log in to the site, for example.

Necessary & Optimalisation

???cookiebar.consent-level.2.text.accessibility???

Cookies that collect information about visitor behaviour anonymously to help make the website work more effectively.

Necessary & Optimalisation & Marketing

???cookiebar.consent-level.3.text.accessibility???

Cookies that make it possible to track visitors and show them personalised adverts. These are used by third-party advertisers to gather data about online behaviour. To watch Youtube videos you need to enable this category.